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Origin and history

The chapel Notre-Dame-de-Becquerel is located at Becquerel, on the municipality of Bono (Morbihan), in Brittany. Built in the 16th century, it is distinguished by its hillside positioning, with a square bedside and a Renaissance-style north side façade. Its enclosure, including a fountain and a half-circular wall, was inscribed in the Historical Monuments on June 30, 1925. The floor of the chapel is level, but the choir overlooks two to three meters, housing a niche with a spring feeding a swimming pool.

Inside, the chapel features a wooden vault and two ogival arcades extending the walls of the nave to cross the transepts. The carved sandstones of the left nave, dating from the 13th or 14th centuries, bear witness to an older origin. The bell tower, rebuilt in 1842, dominates the whole. The chapel was an important place of pilgrimage, especially for sailors, as attested to by La Croix des Mariners in 1901, which mentioned a special tributary every August 15.

The furniture includes three processional statues, including two imposing ships, reflecting the close link between the chapel and the local maritime community. Several boats bore his name, such as the boat Notre-Dame-de-Béquerel, stranded in 1901 at the Pointe du Grazu before being bailed out without major damage, an event attributed to the miraculous protection of the Virgin. A replica of a "forban", a traditional Bono boat, was also named Notre-Dame de Becquerel in 1992.

Administratively, the chapel now depends on the parish of Plougoumelen for worship. Its exact address, according to the Merimée database, is linked to the code Insee 56262 (Morbihan), although some sources are located approximately in Kermarker, in the neighbouring town of Plougoumelen. The property belongs to the municipality of Bono, and the site remains a major architectural and spiritual testimony of the region of valveais.

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